Health and Indigenous Affairs Correspondent

Lake Eyre will be officially known by its Aboriginal name, Kati Thanda. Photo: David Mariuz

MORE than 150 years after it was named after the first white man to see it, Lake Eyre will be officially known by its Aboriginal name, Kati Thanda.

While Lake Eyre - the name bestowed in 1860 by South Australian governor Richard MacDonnell - will continue to be used, the name used by the Arabana people, the traditional owners of the area, will also be officially recognised by South Australia's Geographic Names Unit.

Aaron Stuart, the chairman of the Arabana Aboriginal Corporation was elated by the news. ''It's a good Christmas present for all Arabana people and all Aboriginal people in Australia,'' he said.

''The name is so ancient, it travels with the generations. Our elders may have passed away but we remember them and the name they used for the lake. It was our ancestors who lived there when Edward John Eyre first saw the lake in 1840.''

Advertisement

''The dual naming is the right thing to do in this great country that we all share,'' he said.

Mr Stuart said he hoped in time people would stop using the name Lake Eyre and know the lake as Kati Thanda.

In May the Federal Court recognised the Arabana people's native title over lands, including Lake Eyre.

The manager of South Australia's Geographical Names Unit, Bill Watt, said either name was correct, but in official publications both names should be used.

Mr Watt said since 1991 South Australia had recognised Aboriginal names for about 300 features, including Torrens river (Karrawirra Parri) and the state's highest peak, Mount Woodroffe (Ngarutjaranya).

The lake, 700 kilometres north of Adelaide, is the lowest point in Australia at 15 metres below sea level. On the rare occasions that it fills, it is the largest lake in the country.